The Water Watcher
by HookedOnAvatar011
Summary: Four years after the events in GotSS, Chagum is on the run from assassins. While Balsa and the others are investigating the assassins, Chagum is asked to help the new Nyuga Ro Im find a mate so that the next egg can be born sooner. ChagumXOC BalsaXTanda
1. Chapter 1

**- - - - - - - - - The Water Watcher - - - - - - - - -**

Chapter One - - - - - - - - - -

Chagum POV:

I smelled the smoke instantly. It was the kind of smell you never forget. The smells of burning wood and flesh. Last, time I was long gone by the time it reached me, so the intensity had dulled quite a bit. Now, I was right near it and it hit full in the face. I woke and set up, my body trying to decide between coughing and throwing up. I settled for coughing for right now.

"Chagum! Chagum!" Balsa ran into my room and pulled me to my feet. "We must go, Chagum. Now."

"What's going on Balsa?"

Balsa looked at me sadly. Every since I'd made her my personal bodyguard, she had slowly gotten more carefree about showing her emotions to me. "I'm sorry, Chagum. There were assassins. Your parent's bodyguards couldn't protect them and by the time I got there, it was too late and the men were gone."

"What are you saying?"

"Your parents have been killed. You would have been too if I hadn't ran into the assassins on the way down here. Come on. We have to get you to a safe place."

I followed her, trying to keep from tripping over my robes. "Where are we going, Balsa?"

"I don't know yet. They've already found and ransacked Hunter's Cave. Tanda just came from there and that's how I knew they were here."

"So are we on the run again?"

"Shaman Torogai said that she knows a place where we may be safe. She said that you would be especially welcome there. It's in the mountains, about half a league from Hunter's Cave and is cut into the rock just like it. There's a girl there that I saved before I met you. She's not too fond of me, or of anyone really, but you grow to like her well enough. Eventually. Maybe."

I didn't know where we were going and I had just become an orphan, but there was time to worry about that later. Besides, trusted Balsa. I'd follow her to the end of the world if she told me to, because I know that she would always find a way.

* * *

Hero POV:

"Hero!" I heard a familiar voice call. "Hero! Where are you, you idiot girl?"

I sighed and stood reluctantly before walking towards the main room. "I'm coming, you grouchy old bag. What do you want this time? My brother is out today, but he'll be ba-… BALSA!"

For those of you who think that was a cry of joy, you'd be wrong. It was a cry of rage. I glared at the spearwielder and she only smiled gently. "Hey Hero."

"Ima kill you!" I unsheathed my knife and ran at her. I slashed and I kicked but she avoided my moves fluidly. "Stand still!"

Tanda laughed. "As if she's actually going to just stand still, Hero."

I was distracted from my foe for a moment by the Yakue man. "Tanda? You're still hanging out with this Oba-san? I thought you were the smart one?"

Balsa glared at me and since I was the same height she was, it didn't have as much effect. "Since when am I an Oba-san?"

"Hey! Who's the chibi?" I asked, completely distracted. I had a short attention span.

The chibi bristles and straightened up to his full height, which was still a foot shorter than me. "I'm not a chibi. You're just really tall. Who old are you, thirty?"

"Hey! You shut your mouth Chibi-tan. I'm only sixteen."

His eyes widened. "No way! I'm sixteen!"

Tanda laughed and put a hand on the boy's shoulder. "Don't fret about it, Chagum. Hero here is from Hanamadoki. The women there are taller than the men. That's mainly because the woman were bred a hundred years ago to be tall so that they could reach the fruits in the ridiculously tall trees that are native to that land and also to make their reach longer with their knives. See, in Hanamadoki, the men and women roles are switched. They're like penguins. The men take care of the children while the mother spends three months in the forest gathering fruit that they use as produce for their lively hood."

I rolled my eyes. "Thanks for the culture lesson, Tanda, but I think you're boring the poor kid."

He shook his head and looked up at Tanda with bright eyes. "Oh, no. I find other cultures fascinating."

"I was trying to get a chance to take everyone inside so that I can finally eat! Throw me a bone kid!"

"Why would I throw a bone at you?"

I sighed and shook my head. "Who are you, Kid-Who-Is-Dumber-Than-My-Aniki?"

He seemed to ignore my last remark. "My name is Chagum. I'm the Crown Prince of…. Actually, I guess I'm the Emperor, now."

I could practically read the story in his sad eyes. "Ah… I get it. This is anther case of Balsa saving the kid after the parents have been slaughtered. Eh, Balsa?"

She hesitated, but nodded. "Must you put it so crudely?"

I sighed again and threw an arm around the kid's shoulders. "Come on in, Chibi-tan. We can eat and I'll tell you the story of how I met Balsa. I'm assuming that you all need a place to stay?"

I looked over at the shaman and she nodded. "If you would."

I shrugged. "What kind of 'Hero' would I be if I didn't help people in need? Before I tell you my story, I wanna hear yours."

I led the four of them inside and the first room we came to was the main room. It wasn't much. Just a couch, a chair and a fire pit. Next, we walked into the door on the left and found the kitchen/dinning room, which was really just a larger fire pit, four rugs (one on each side), and a pile of wood.

"I see that you were expecting us." Tanda said as he looked around.

Chibi looked back at him as I made the bowls of food. "What makes you think that, Tanda?" He asked.

Tada snorted with laughter. "The fact she cleaned. If she hadn't been expecting us, you wouldn't be able to move for all the mess."

"So I'm not the best housekeeper. Sue me."

"What you?"

"Never mind, Chibi-tan. Anyway, Tanda, it's not that I was expecting you in particular. Would I have bothered to clean if I knew it was you? No. All that Spirit told me was that I should expect visitors."

Balsa looked up from the bowl that I handed her. "Spirit? Who's Spirit?"

I shrugged. "Iunno. Some kind of water spirit I guess. Shows up at the door one rainy day, tells me her name is Spirit, then asks me if I can spare a bucket of water for her to live in. Of course, she was tiny then, so the bucket that she needed just had to keep getting bigger. I ended up having to dig a small pool in the bedroom for her."

Chibi jumped to his feet. "Can I see her?"

I was taken aback slightly, but shrugged. "Be my guest. She's quite the chatterbox, so don't get mad at me if she starts talking your ear off."

Shaman Torogai looked at me surprised as Chagum ran into my bedroom. "You can understand her?"

"Sure," I said, kind of curious as to what she was talking about. "Why wouldn't I be able to?"

She was quiet for a moment before following Chagum into the bedroom. I left a thoughtful Tanda and a curious Balsa in the kitchen as to follow them. I stopped in the doorway and watched at the chibi fell to his knees in front of Spirit. Spirit didn't look very odd, unless you count the complexion so pale that you can see her bright blue veins on her face and neck and also her webbed fingers and toes. Other than that, she could be any four-year-old human girl.

"Shaman Torogai," Chibi said quietly, without turning to look at her. "Is she…"

"Yes, Chagum. This is the latest Nyunga Ro Im. The one that you bore for so long."

"Wait," I started as I walked farther in the room. "You're the Guardian she keeps talking about?"

Chibi nodded. "I am."

I smirked and bent down to his ear. "She's got quite the crush on you, Chibi-tan."

He blushed and took a big step away from the pool. Spirit giggled and pushed herself on of the pool to sit leisurely on the edge. _**"I have been awaiting you, Chagum-sama,"**_ She said in that sickly sweet voice of hers.

"Why would you be awaiting this Chibi-tan? He's short for his age, even in my village's standards."

"Hey!"

Balsa chuckled as she walked in the room. "I had no idea you would be so sensitive about your height, Chagum."

He glared at the floor slightly and pouted. "Well, no had ever called me short before. I'm not that much shorter than the other boys my age."

Spirit interrupted. _**"Chagum-sama is the first Guardian to survive in over ten thousand years. It was the old custom, before the Eaters began to come after them, the Guardians would help the Princess to find a mate."**_

"A mate?" I asked her. Everyone looked over at me.

Spirit nodded. _**"That is why it always took one-hundred years for the next Princess to be born. A Princess must carry the egg for fifty years before it is given to a Guardian, so, if after fifty years of life, the Princess has still not chosen a mate, one is forced upon her by the other SeaSky Beings. Now that Chagum-sama is here, I will be able to choose my own mate."**_

"What is she saying?" Tanda asked.

I looked over at them. "What do you mean? Can't you hear her?"

"We can hear her," Shaman Torogai answered. "But all that we can understand is garbled gurgling."

"Then why can I understand her?"

Shaman Torogai looked away and started heading back for the kitchen. "Hmm… I don't know."

"Yes you do! You know!"

"Do not."

"Do so!"

"Do not!"

"Do so, do so, do so!"

She didn't answer because she was probably gorging herself on my food… again. Balsa and Tanda laughed quietly as they left. Chibi still remained poolside. I knelt down beside him and we were both quiet for a moment.

"Can you translate for me?" He asked. "I'd like to talk to her."

I just looked at him for a moment before nodding. "Just talk. She can probably understand you. I'll just translate what she says, I guess."

He nodded and started to speak. Granted I couldn't understand all of the Yogo words, especially with his thick accent, but it seemed to me that he was telling her a story. Much of what I had to translate from her was 'Oh! Really?' and 'And then what happened?'

He kept talking even after she'd fallen asleep on the ledge. When he was finally finished, I took Spirit up in my arms and laid her into the water so that she sunk to the bottom. If she stayed out of water for too long, she'd dry up.

"So," I started after ten minutes of silence. "What were you telling her? I could only get the gist."

He smiled nostalgically. "I was telling her the story of what I went through to see her born safely."

We were quiet again for a while before I finally made to stand. "Well! We better get to sleep. Right, Chibi-ta-…"

I was stopped by a tug on my sleeve. I looked down and saw the kid's head bowed and small dots of water suddenly appearing on the dirt floor. I sighed and sat back down before taking the kid in my arms and letting him cry on my shoulder.

"My parents… my home… my country… everything is going wrong…," He whispered through tears.

I pat his back awkwardly. "Do you want me to go get Tanda? Or even Balsa? I was never too good at handling other people's sudden displays of emotion."

He didn't say a word, but held me tighter. I sighed, but I understood. He didn't want the others to see him like this. It's different if a complete stranger sees you break down, but if the people that you're closest to see you break down, you can never really come back from that.


	2. Chapter 2

**- - - - - - - - - The Water Watcher - - - - - - - - -**

Chapter Two - - - - - - - - - -

Balsa POV:

"So?" I started as I walked over to Torogai and bent down to her. "You really do know, don't you? Why she can talk to Spirit."

Torogai looked thoughtful for a moment before nodding. "I do. Tanda knows too."

I looked over at my long-time friend and he nodded. "One of her parents was a member of the Water People, right?"

I felt my eyes widen and looked back over at Torogai. "Is that true?"

"It's true," She answered. "Hero is half Water Tribe. I talked to her father at the Knot when we were looking for clues on Chagum's egg. He asked me to look out for her."

"Does she know?" Tanda asked, looking up from his bowl of food.

Torogai shook her head. "No. She thinks that her mother's husband is her father, and right up until his death, he thought she was his daughter."

"But you know something was different about her when I brought her to you, didn't you?"

"Do you think I'd miss something like that? Of course I knew. That girl is overflowing with renai."

"What's renai?" I asked.

Tanda was the one to answer. "It's the substance that distinguishes demons and spirits from humans. Without it, they would be just a fragile as we are. I guess you could call it a catalyst. It speeds up the production of cells and molecules, which is why demons and spirits are so strong. They only have to work out for a week and still become stronger than a human would if he worked out for a year. It's also how they control elements. With practice, they can control their renai and choose the kind of molecule it helps to create. That's why their able to create water from their palms."

"Wow. So, are there any downfalls to it? For the half-blood?"

"A few. Their wounds disappear in minutes but the spot will feel numb for about twenty-four hours." Torogai answered. "And, while their cell production is sped up, their human minds develop slower. That's why most half bloods act about five years younger than they really are, but still have amazingly high IQs. Look at Hero for instance."

"What about Hero?" The redhead herself asked as she walked in. This was the only reason she couldn't move into the city. Hanamadokians always had bright red hair and it stood out tremendously in a city. We'd offered the die her hair black, but she refused. There were also the silver eyes that were another sure sign of Hanamadoki heritage, but they weren't as noticeable.

"We were talking about what a beautiful young lady you've grown into," Tanda answered.

She looked at him with a raised eyebrow, telling him that she didn't buy it. Then she shrugged. "Oh, stuff it, Tanda. I don't really care anyway. I need to talk to you about what Spirit said earlier."

"What did she say?" Torogai asked her, leaning in closer to hear.

"She said that Chibi-tan was the only Guardian to survive in over ten thousand years and that according to old tradition, he's supposed to help her find a mate. She said that because the Princess has to carry the egg for fifty years before giving it to a Guardian, if, after fifty-years, the Princess hasn't chosen a mate of her own, one is forced on her."

I shook me head. "No. Chagum cannot take on something like this with all those assassins after him."

"But if he doesn't, it will a hundred years before the next Guardian," Torogai interrupted. "Imagine if all the knowledge we went through so much to find was lost before then and the Guardian was killed. If we find her a mate now, at least Chagum and Hero will still be alive when the next one comes along. And we know how to take out the egg without harming the Guardian. Imagine, Balsa, if that was lost."

I hesitated. She was right. Chagum had to do this. But a part of me didn't want to let him. "What did Chagum say about it?"

Hero shrugged. "Nothing. I didn't tell him yet. He fell asleep in there by the pool, so I dragged him over to my bed and left him there. I can set up the other beds now if you guys are tired."

Tanda nodded and stood, helping Balsa to her feet. "That would be nice. Thank you so much, Hero."

Hero shrugged and started leading us to the bedroom. "I only have four bedrolls so who ever has the most space left on theirs has to share with someone."

Hero POV:

Of course so only one with any space left at all was the chibi. Well, Shaman Torogai had some space left but I didn't really want to sleep within five feet of her. I'd learned my lesson when I was younger and we were all sleeping on a mountain trail. Have you ever woken up with more drool on your head than hair? Not fun.

So of course, Chibi had to wake up before me and find me sleeping beside him, with his arm in my vice grip. According to Balsa it took them thirty minutes to wake me up without risking the safety of Chibi-tan's arm.

The explained to him over breakfast what I had told them last night. When they were finished, he was quiet for a while and didn't speak until breakfast was over.

"So, what are we going to do?" He asked.

Balsa hesitated and bent down to his level. "Listen, Chagum. As much as I don't want to leave you, finding a woman spearwielder with a young boy would way to easy. And besides, I need to investigate the assassins. Until we get this matter settled, you'll be going with Hero and Spirit to find Spirit a mate."

"What!" I exclaimed. "You decided this without me?"

Balsa looked at me sharply. "Please, Hero. You're the only person besides me or Torogai who can protect him if worse comes to worse. Besides, it'll be easier for you three to masquerade as siblings than for he and I to be mother and son."

I crossed my arms and pouted. "Fine."

Balsa nodded. "Thank you."

"Wait," Chibi said looking at me. "How exactly are we supposed to find her a mate?"

"Well, she said that she'd be able to feel it if a potential mate was nearby. So, I guess we just parade her around the country until she finds one." Balsa seemed a bit uncomfortable with that idea, so I didn't bother mentioning the fact that we'd probably have to try in other countries as well.

"We should go," Shaman Torogai said suddenly as she stood. "The longer we stay here the more chance they have a finding Chagum. We will see you two after this matter has been resolved."

Balsa gave Chagum a quick hug and then she and Tanda followed her out. Before he left, Tanda gave me a quick, reassuring smile. "It'll be alright, Hero. Don't worry."

I just nodded and then they were gone.

"Hero?" Spirit asked as she came in the room wearing the clothes that Shaman Torogai has lent her. They fit her in the length but not in the width. "Are we about to go?"

Chibi jumped. "She just spoke in our language."

Spirit smiled and nodded. "Yes. I have been focusing my renai on my vocal cords for the last year so that I could speak to you. I can use it too much yet. They need some more time since I'm still so young and inexperienced in using renai."

"Well, to answer your earlier question, Spirit, yes we are leaving… right about… now."


	3. Chapter 3

**- - - - - - - - - The Water Watcher - - - - - - - - -**

Chapter Three - - - - - - - - - -

Vill POV:

"Hero! I'm home! Hero?" I looked around our small house-ish thing that we'd found carved into the mountain. "Hero? Where are you?" Then I saw a note sitting on the kitchen table. I picked it up and read it, getting angrier the farther I got.

_Dear Nii-san, _

_This is Hero! Well, Balsa and Tanda and the shaman lady and this kid showed up. The kid, now officially named Chibi-tan, was being chased by assassins, so while the old people went to investigate, Chibi-tan and I are helping Spirit find a mate. Apparently Chibi-tan is the guardian or something. Anywho, the gist is, we were in hurry and had to leave, and I didn't really feel like explaining all this to you because it'd take too long, so we left before you got back. Sorry~~~_

_Your Adopted Sister Whom You Love Dearly,_

_Hero_

"I'M GONNA KILL YOU, HERO!"

* * *

Hero POV:

"ACHOO!" I sneezed.

"Bless you. Are you getting sick?"

"No, I think someone just talked about me." I shivered. "And with murderous intent."

"Huh?"

"Nothing. It's a commoner's saying."

We were quiet for a few moments as we trekked up the mountain.

"Where are we going first?" Chibi asked looking over at me over Spirit's head.

"Well… I have no clue, but I figure we should start in one of the closest towns. If we're going for distance then Jinna, Ika, Olytie are tied for closest."

"Which would you suggest?"

"Jinna is the largest and there are more people there, which is good for a number of reasons. Plus, the closest town from Jinna after we leave is only a two-hour's walk. So we can get threw to relatively large towns in one day. I'm voting Jinna."

Spirit's hand flew up. "Me too! I vote too!"

Chibi nodded. "It does sound like the best choice. Okay. Jinna it is… You do know how to get there, don't you?"

"What? Of course I do! I'm not a complete idiot you know."

"That remains to be proven."

"You want a fist down your throat, Chibi-tan? No? Then I suggest you shut your mouth. I may not be book smart, but I'm street smart. I could find my way to Jinna sleepwalking and with one foot tied to an angry mule."

"Luckily we don't have to test that out."

I loved Jinna. It was the sort of place where you could go and just be yourself and not have anyone look down on you for it.

* * *

"Growing up," I said looking over the chibi. "I was always at the butt of people's sneers. I wasn't smart like my twin sister. When she was studying the ins and outs of politics, I was still struggling with basic maths. Plus, Jira was always sick with something so she got a lot of pity, and when I refused to show my sister any pity when she was sick for the hundredth time, things got even worse for me.

"It eventually got the point where I, with my low IQ and sharp tongue, was such an embarrassment on my family, that they hired people to kill me and make it look like an accident. I was about...nine-years-old when the assassins came? They messed up and thought they were supposed to kill my whole family, and that's how I ended up where I was. Balsa saved me and by that time my parents were long dead. I never found out what happened to my sister though. I assume she's either dead or was taken in by one of my mother's friends.

"Anyway, we stayed with Torogai and Tanda for a couple months because Balsa had fallen into a coma after getting a really nasty concussion. After she woke up, she spent about a week getting back on her feet and then she, Torogai and I went into the mountains and they brought me to this little town. That's where I met Vill-nii. His parents had just died but he offered to take me in and after about a year I started calling him Aniki. The assassins came for me again to finish the job. I was eleven by then. Vill-nii took me out into the mountains and it was harder than normal because of some strange draught.

"Then we found the cave. Only Torogai knew where we were because she happened upon a few months later. Then, the rest is history. Well, that's my story, Chibi-tan. Can I go eat something now?"

He only nodded and got to his feet before handing me back the dinner roll he had been keeping hostage. "Sorry," He muttered quietly. "I just wanted to know how you knew Balsa. I didn't mean to make you relive any bad memories or anything."

I shrugged. "Don't worry about it," I told him, licking my lips at the sight of the buttery roll in my hands. "I'm way over all of that. I can't even remember most of the really gruesome stuff. It happened seven years ago after all. Why'd you want to know about me and Balsa, anyway? Scared because I've known her longer and might try to take her?"

He blushed and looked down at his own food. "Well… My mother was just killed and Balsa…"

"Is all you have? I know. I felt that way for a while too. But you've got to remember, Chibi-tan, that Balsa is a free spirit. She doesn't belong to anyone so there are going to be times when she has to leave. But the good thing about Balsa is that she always finds time to come back."

He looked up at me and nodded, for once ignoring the 'Chibi' joke. "You're right," He said.

Suddenly, Spirit started giggling. Chibi and I looked over at her curiously, but she just kept giggling insanely.

"Spirit?" I asked leaning over to her. "You okay? Nothing funny happened."

She stopped giggling for a second to catch her breath, but still had a huge smile on her face. "He's near. Whenever a potential mate is near, I suddenly get very…" She took a deep breath to steel herself. "…Very happy."

I jumped to my feet. "Where is he?"

"O-Out…. Outside," She said through deep breaths. "Down the st-street."

I threw the door open and ran down the stairs. It was dark outside and most people in the small roadside inn were probably asleep by now. I looked around but didn't see anyone or hear anything.

Then there was a scream. "AHHH! HELP!"

I ran towards the scream and found a boy about seventeen leaning over the side of a cliff, holding his hand out to a five-year-old boy who was barely hanging onto the ledge.

"Somebody please help my brother!"

I ran over and pushed the boy out of the way so that I could reach down to the boy. My abnormally long arms came in handy sometimes. I reach down and the boy looked up at me with panicked blue eyes. He reached with his free arm as far as it would go and our fingertips hooked each other's.

"Hold on tight," I told him.

He nodded, still looking deathly afraid. Then, a strange dark smoke slithered down the rock passed my face and down towards the boy. The smoke curled around the hand that was holding onto the rock and squeezed. I could hear the bones snapping like twigs. He screamed in pain and he cradled his hand near his chest. I don't know exactly what happened next, but it seemed like a intense, but strangely dark light shone in my face, and when the light was gone, the boy's hand had slipped from mine.

* * *

"I don't know what was going on. One morning a few day ago Kalt walks up to me and says, 'Nii-san we need to go to Jinna.' I asked him why and he didn't answer, so I told him no. The next morning he was gone. I caught up with him about five hours later on our father's horse. He said that someone was calling him. He said that someone needed him. I decided to follow the voices in his head. He was riding the horse because he was tired and it lost it's footing. The horse went straight down but he managed to grab a hold of something. I called for help, and that's when you showed up."

I nodded. "Thank you for telling us. I'm sorry I failed to help your brother."

The boy's brother, Kimble, shook his head. "I know that it wasn't your fault. I saw the smoke." And that was the last thing he said before he left the room to go to the room he'd rented. We could hear his sobs through the wall.

I turned to Spirit. "Care to explain?"

"I forgot to mention the smoke, didn't I?"

"Yes, you did."

"Well, that's why we need the guardians. The smoke tries to kill my mates when they get too close. About the time I start feeling happy is when the smoke shows up. I don't know what it is or where it comes from, but unless Kalt is still alive somehow, we have to wait ten years for my next mate to show up."

"Why didn't you tell us about all of this before?" Chibi asked, sounding calm.

She shrugged. "I forgot. It's not like I have mother to remind me about it and it's been four years since the SeaSky Beings told me."

"Anything else you forgot to mention?"

"Um… Nope, I think that's it. Oh, wait! Did I tell you about how after the egg forms my Guardian need to accompany me and my mate and my mate's family to the Yakue village in Kanbal called Inuei?"

"No."

"Well, now I did."

I sighed and laid a hand on my forehead. "Anything else?"

"Hmmm… hmmm… Yep, that's it. Oh, did I mention how the only way to get to Inuei is to bribe the Water People with a sacrifice of great importance to my Guardian to help us through the Cave River?"

Chagum the Chibi clutched at something around his neck. Probably him most prized possession. "Sacrifice?"

Spirit nodded and looked around the room thoughtfully. "Okay, that's it this time. My vocal cords are tired. I'm gonna go to sleep now."

She crawled over to her futon and we heard her snoring seconds later. I stood and walked towards the door. "I'm going to find a way down that canyon. I want to see for myself if Kalt is dead or not. I don't think I could survive ten more years with this girl."

He stood as well. "I'm going with you."

"And leave Spirit here alone to deal with the saddening death of her mate? I don't think so. You're the Guardian, Chibi-tan, which means you guard. I'm the girl who tags along to fight and rescue people, so that's what I'm gonna do. If I'm not back by morning, go on without me. I'll catch up."

He nodded reluctantly and sat back down on his futon. "Be careful. And, I'm not short."

I smirked and left the room. As I walked down the hall, my smile fell. I could smell the boy's blood from the room, which means that the wolves smelled it too.


	4. Chapter 4

**- - - - - - - - - The Water Watcher - - - - - - - - -**

Chapter Four - - - - - - - - - -

Balsa POV:

I was not happy. I was antsy but kept it all hidden beneath a stony frown. It was times like these- times when I wanted so desperately to hide something- that I hated how well Tanda knew me.

"He's going to be okay, Balsa," He told me smiling.

I nodded. "I know." And I did. I knew for certain that he would be alive the next I saw him. This must be what a mother feels the first time she sends her child out for an errand in town. "I just… It doesn't feel right without him here. We've been together for so long and have been through so much. And he's just a kid, Tanda."

Tanda smiled gently and took me in his arms. Normally I wouldn't permit this, especially when we were in a crowded marketplace like we were at that moment, but part of me- a small, lonely part of me that I tried so hard to hide- knew I needed this right now.

"Whenever you start worrying, just think these words. 'He's with Hero. He's with Hero.'"

I sigh. "That's what I'm worried about."

He looked at me curiously and confused. "Why would the fact that he's with a skilled fighter with the means to protect him be what's worrying you?"

"Because Hero has a tendency to keep things from people because she thinks it's better if they don't know and she likes to fix things all by herself. If she gets herself into trouble, who is going to protect him?"

He just laughed quietly. "For some reason, I think that Hero is entirely capable of getting herself out of any mess and getting back before Chagum even notices."

"And what about the Nyunga Ro Im?" Torogai asked as she came up behind us with her arms full of supplies. "You two are missing the big picture. If Hero is hurt, then not only is Chagum in danger, but so is the whole world."

Tanda rolled his eyes. "Thank you for making us feel so much better, Master."

Torogai shrugged and started eating a star fruit. "I try."

Tanda's POV:

I watched Balsa as we headed back to the hotel to prepare to follow a lead to the assassin's hideout. Her long brown her falling easily over her shoulders and her slim hips swaying as she walked with astounding elegance. She still hasn't answered me.

I know that until this whole matter with the assassins is solved, I cannot ask her again. That's okay. I already know her answer.

I can see it in the way she looks at me over the table when she thinks that I can't see and in the way the watches me chop wood and mix medicine. She's thinking. She's trying to decide whether, with her life style, it would be responsible to start a family. She's trying to decide if I'm as dedicated to her as I claim.

I sigh and look at me feet as we continue on, not able to get the fantasies of a life with Balsa as my wife out of my mind.

Hero's POV:

It was a struggling getting down the side of the canyon, even for me, who had spent so many years living in a cave that was carved into the side of a mountain. I reached the bottom and spotted the pool of blood that I guessed is where the boy landed. The canyon wasn't as deep as it looked from up above, what with all the fog. A fall like this wouldn't kill a person his size. Maybe a baby, but not a five-year-old. Even the horse only had a broken leg and was struggling to stand.

I walked over to it and whispered soothing words in it's ear before tying up it's wound and helping him balance on his three good legs.

If the boy wasn't where he'd fallen, there was only one explanation. The wolves had gotten him.

Before I go on, I should tell you something about me. I'm weird. No really. As hard as it is to believe, it's true. I have a wolf's sense of smell and a deer's hearing. Well, I'm weird for other reasons too, but these are the big ones. I don't know why, but for as long as I can remember I've had extraordinary smell and hearing.

That's how I knew where they'd taken Kalt's body.

I followed my nose and the sound of two fighting wolves and found just what I was hoping for. Their cave.

Leaving the horse outside tied to a rock, I crept up to the entrance, but, being wolves, they all ready knew I was there.

Kalt's POV:

"Kalt? Kalt? You okay, kid?"

I opened my eyes to the voice. And groaned in pain. When I finally got my eyes open, they widened in fear. Before me stood a blood soaked girl with a face-splitting grin on her face. "AHHH!" I screamed, in both fear and pain.

She just grinned wider. "Calm down. My name is Hero. I've come to save you."

I looked at her closely through all the mud and blood. "You… you're that girl who tried to save me on the cliff."

She nodded and crawled over to me. She started feeling my shin and looked concerned when I howled in pain. "It's broken. You're hand is too. It's already the size of a grapefruit. You're lucky those wolves didn't eat you before I got here. Looks like one of the tried to though. You've got these teeth marks on your leg and they're bleeding profusely. Look at that! It's kind cool."

I sat up as best I can, then fainted at the sight of all that blood.

Hero's POV (last POV change of the chapter. There seemed to be a lot this time):

I made sure to take a quick dip in the spring before heading back. I had to wash off all the blood so that Chagum didn't get suspicious. I carried the kid on my while pulling the horse along behind us. It turned out that there was a small rode not far from where I'd climbed down and nearly killed myself so that it was easy to get back up. Go figure.

Anyway, it was just cracking dawn when I walked into the hotel. The old lady at the counter looked at me like I was insane, but I ignored her. I could hear Spirit's insane laughter all the way down the hall.

When I opened the door, Chagum was already awake and Kimble was sitting on the floor beside him, but Spirit was laughing in her sleep.

"Ugh!" I groaned, causing both boys to look at me oddly. "How do we make her stop?"

"Hero!" Chagum exclaimed.

Kimble looked a little teary-eyes as I laid Kalt on the bed that I hadn't used last night. "He's alive… Oh thank god..." And ten Kimble passed out.

"Wow, this family's weird. They both passes out within the span of half an hour."

Chagum just watched me for a second as I sat down across from him and stole his cup of tea. "What happened?" He asked. "Why'd you take so long?"

"The canyon wall was hard to scale with a kid on my back and horse behind me, so I had to look around for a couple hours to find a way up."

He gave me a look that said he didn't believe me, but never said anything, because right then, Spirit woke u, gasping for breath and grinning sadistically. "He's here!" She crawled over to Kalt quickly and kissed his cheek, and then all of her giggles subsided. "Finally! I thought I was going to laugh myself to death."

We were all quiet for a moment while Spirit regained her composure.

"Hey," I said. "I've been wondering. What exactly is a four-year-old going to do with a mate? Do you two hafta… you know?"

She titled her head in curiosity. "Have to what?"

"Never mind. How do you two create the egg?"

"Oh, we already have! His aura and mine mix together and the result becomes an egg." She held out her hand a small blue orb of light sat on it gently. "See?"

I sighed in relief. "Great. I was worried. But why isn't the egg inside of you?"

"Because I'm not the Guardian, stupid. I told you that I have to carry the egg for fifty years didn't I?"

"Oh, you meant literally 'carry'. I get it now. Makes sense, I guess." I looked over at Chagum and saw him looking at me incredulously. "What?" I asked.

"You've one strange girl."

I smiled and hugged him tightly. "But you all love me anyway!"

"Hardly…" He muttered, just loud enough for me to hear it.

I grinned even wider and let him go, just in time for one of the brothers to wake up.

"What happened?" Kimble asked, sitting up and holding his head.

"You were being a pansy and passed out from happiness," I told him. "Now, before you go fainting again, we should probably treat your brother's wound. If you're as tipsy at the sight of blood as he is, maybe you should leave."

He paled slightly and nodded. He looked at his brother one last time before brushing some hair from the boy's eyes and leaving the room. Chagum and I crawled over to the sleeping five year old and I began to unwrap the makeshift bandages I'd given him.

Chagum wince slightly, but looked up at me when I'd finished. "There's not blood and the wound is already taken care of."

"I know, but guys like that get on my nerves. When I'm here this becomes a 'No Pansy' zone, so he had to go."

"Where did these bandages come from? It doesn't look like any of them came from your clothes."

"That's because I made them from my chest wrappings. I keep them wrapped so that boys don't ogle them. You not notice they were bigger than before?"

A blush overcame his face as he looked away, forcing himself not to look and check what I'd said. "Honestly, I wasn't looking."

I laughed. "Don't worry, I'm kidding. I'm just trying to mess with you. I had some rags for occasions like this in my rucksack."

"Which part were you kidding about? The part where you took off the wrappings, or the fact that your wear wrappings in the first place?" He asked, still not looking.

I smirked. This was kinda fun. "You wanna check, Chibi-tan?"

He shook his head vigorously. "NO!"

I laughed. "I'm wearing wrappings."

Spirit laughed as she crawled over beside us. "You two are so funny. So, when do we leave? We still need to get to Inuei."

"Do Pansy 1 and Pansy 2 really have to come with us?" I asked, whining slightly.

"Well, no, but usually they like to. Most fathers want to meet their first child, I'd assume."

"If you can call him a father. All he had to do was show up and POOF there's a baby. Father's have it so easy," I sneered quietly. "Well, either way, they're not coming with us."

Spirit shrugged. "I can always come visit him after I settle in at Inuei."

"That's the spirit, Spirit. Now let's go before he wakes up."

* * *

Jinna was beautiful this time of year. "Oh wow!" I exclaimed. "I forgot that this was the time of the Pride Festival!"

"Pride Festival?" Chibi-tan asked, stepping up beside we as we stood in the entrance to the city. "What's the Pride Festival?"

"Well, people from all over come to compete. There are a whole lot of different competitions and the person who wins the most gets to have a ball held in their honor at the end. Oh! Can we stay? Please, please, please, please, please?"

Chibi sighed. "I don't see the harm in staying for the festival. How long is it?"

"It's five days long, counting the ball."

"Alright. What kind of events are there?"

"Well, there's wrestling, cooking, animal shows, beauty contests, eating contests, horse races, foot races, swimming, kite flying, singing contests, dancing contests, archery contests, swords fighting contests, knife fighting contests, and stuff like that."

Chagum looked a little dazed. "Wow. That's a lot of events. What are you going to do?"

"I'm not sure yet. Mostly the first two days are full of events that were thought up for men, and the second two days are for the woman's events, so I'll probably be doing most of my competing during the first two days."

"Figured..."

"What was that?"

"Nothing! I didn't say anything!"

"Thought not. Alright! Let's go get a hotel room and prepare for the greatest five days of the year!"

"She's really pumped up about this isn't she, Spirit?"


End file.
